Tag Archives: Itochu Enex Team Impul

Catching up with the Japanese Super Formula Championship, as part of Toyota Gazoo Racing’s 2018 motorsport activities announcement, Toyota confirmed 10 of their 11 drivers for the upcoming Super Formula campaign.

Two-time and defending Super Formula champion Hiroaki Ishiura will lead the charge for Toyota in 2018, with Ryo Hirakawa returning to the series after a two-year absence for Itochu Enex Team Impul, and James Rossiter returning full-time to replace the retired André Lotterer at Vantelin Team TOM’s.

It wasn’t the dominant performance that he put on this time a year ago, but Yuhi Sekiguchi did hang on to win the sixth round of the 2017 Japanese Super Formula Championship at Sportsland SUGO on Sunday, keeping his hopes of winning the 2017 championship alive going into next month’s JAF Grand Prix weekend at Suzuka Circuit.

Sekiguchi denied Red Bull Team Mugen’s Pierre Gasly a third consecutive victory by just 0.243 seconds, the closest finish of the season. However, the French rookie closed to within half a point of championship leader Hiroaki Ishiura, who finished sixth – leaving eight drivers still mathematically eligible for the championship in October’s season finale.

Hiroaki Ishiura has always had an affinity for Fuji International Speedway in the Autobacs Super GT Series, winning the Golden Week race, the Fuji 500km, three times – most recently this year with Lexus Team ZENT Cerumo.

But the 36-year-old veteran had never won at Fuji in the Japanese Super Formula Championship in his career. That changed on Saturday, when Ishiura drove his P.MU Cerumo/INGING Toyota to his first win of the 2017 season, becoming the fourth different winner in as many races this season – and taking the points lead with it, as he finished ahead of top rookie Felix Rosenqvist and previous championship leader André Lotterer to complete an all-Toyota podium at their home ground at Fuji.

It’s been over a month, but the third round of the 2017 Japanese Super Formula Championship will get underway this weekend from Fuji International Speedway, for a 55-lap race around the fabled, historic, high-speed circuit at the foot of Mount Fuji.

So far, three different drivers have won the first three races of the season – and with the double-race weekend at Okayama this May paying out only half-points to the winners, this race will serve as the pivot point of the 2017 championship battles.